Process of treating rawhide for use in manufacturing whips



No. 608,315. Patented Aug. 2,' I898.

c. a. BECKER & m. usaorm.

PROCESS OF TB EATING BAWHIDE FOR USE IN MANUFACTURING WHIPS (Applicationfiled Dec. 31, 1895.)

(No Model.)

\X/tpep es. I e 130K; 6 M m UNITED STATES V PATENT CFFIcE.

CHARLES G. BECKER AND MARTIN OSBORN, OF WESTFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS.

PROCESS OF TREATING RAWHIDE FOR USE IN MANUFACTURING WHIPS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 608,315, dated August2, 1898.

' Application filed December 31, 1895. Serial No. 573,899. (Nospecimens.) 7

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that we, CHARLES G. BECKER and MARTIN OSBORN, citizens ofthe United States, residing at Westfield, in the county of Hampden andState of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Method of MakingWhip-Centers from Rawl1ide,of which the following is a specification,reference being had to the accompanying. drawings, forming part thereof.

Our invention relates to the manufacture of whip-centers from rawhide,and has for its object to provide a whip-center which will bepractically impervious to moisture and which will possess the desiredstiffness and elasticity and retain those properties throughout theentire life of the Whip.

The ordinary rawhide of commerce is rarely of suflicient thickness tomeet the-required dimensions of a Whip-center, and to secure a center ofthe desired size it has been customary heretofore to twist a strip ofthe material into spiral form while in a moist condition, the stripretaining its twisted shape when dried; but, whether twisted or not, allsuch centers made from the rawhide in its natural state are open to thevery serious objection that, the material being of a very porous nature,they readily absorb moisture, so that in a short time they begin toswell and the whip loses its elasticity and is rendered practicallyuseless. WVe have discovered that by subjectin g a strip of rawhide ofthe ordinary thickness to great pressure laterally or in a planeparallel with the grain of the hide we can not only produce awhip-center of the required dimensions in cross-section withouttwisting, but that we also so change the character or properties of thematerial that it be comes practically impervious to moisture and retainsthe desired stiffness and elasticity throughout the entire life of thewhip.

Our invention therefore consists in such method of making whip-centersfrom rawhide, as hereinafter fully described, and particularly pointedout in the claim.

Referring to the drawings, in which like letters designate like parts inthe several views, Figure 1 is a view in perspective of a strip ofrawhide before being treated by our method. Fig. 2 is a similar View ofsaid strip after being treated for a portion of its length.

Fig. 3 is a similar view of the whip-center produced from said strip.Fig. 4: is a crosssection of a whip provided with one of our rawhidecenters.

The letter a designates a strip of rawhide of the usual thickness and ofa width substantially twice that of the center to be made therefrom. Inthe practice of our method we subject said strip while in a moist stateto heavy pressure exerted in a direction parallel to the grain thereof,or, in other words, in a direction at a right angle to its thickness.

Such pressure can be secured by passing the strip between weighted rollsor otherwise, and its effect upon the strip is to decrease its width andincrease its thickness in about the same proportions, so that it becomessubstantially square in cross-section, as shown at the lower end of Fig.2 and in Fig. 3, thus giving it the desired dimensions of a whip-center,as shown at bin Figs. 3-and 4. Furthermore, we have found that therawhide when subjected to such treatment changes its properties in thatit becomes practically impervious to moisture and is rendered muchstilfer and more elastic, whereby it is adapted for use in making notonly whip-centers, but various other articles for which rawhide not sotreated is wholly unfitted.

A whip provided with a rawhide center formed byour novel method is notafiected by dampness and retains its original stiffness and elasticityuntil the whip is worn out.

Having thus fully described our invention, what we claim, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is

The method of treating rawhide for forming whip-centers, &c., hereindescribed, the same consisting in first moistening a strip of rawhide,and then subjecting the same, while in a moist condition, to heavypressure parallel to its grain or at a right angle to the thickness ofthe rawhide, and thereby decreasing its width and increasing itsthickness in about equal proportions, substantially as set forth.

CHARLES G. BECKER. MARTIN OSBORN.

Witnesses:

ANDREW L. BUSH, J. A. TALMADGE.

